6.27.2009

good morning friends! it's early for me on saturday morning to be up and about blogging. i am on a mission. an exciting one at that. today from 12:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. i will be showing my work with the Chattanooga Artists Reserve at the Gannon Art Center. Tobi Weldon and Beth Gumnick have done an incredible job this year of making this event one that is unique and inspiring for artists and art collectors alike.

i am showing 20 works, ranging from paper quilt collages to my forest of trees. i have quite a few new pieces as well as several older pieces available for sale. the majority of works are professionally framed, which is wonderful and exciting to see. the other larger pieces have been created on gallery stretched canvas and are ready to be hung or displayed.

the chattanooga artist reserve is a newer art collective that would love to see you and spend the afternoon with you. this year's theme is 'sideshow', with beautiful handmade decorations and favors, art and craft for the young and old, and a venue that is special. the idea, revitalize a 30 year old art store, framing shop, bring gallery artists in and share with the brainerd area the love of the arts.

i'm looking forward to this day! and would love to see you! come one come all!

6.22.2009

so in the free time that really never exists, i have spent some time dragging and pulling and twisting to create this little digimovie slideshow thingy of most of my trees. it is just a way to break up the monotony of painting and cutting. i am still working on creating my own music so in the meantime, i've added melpo mene as the soundtrack. i completely realize that the slides/images are jumpy and fidgety but it was after all just for fun. an experiment of sorts.

this weekend is the chattanooga artists reserve. i picked up twelve newly framed works today. and they look so sweet. i cannot wait to hang.

over the weekend i made my very first yeast rolls, no photo for show, but i did add rosemary and what a great addition at that. baking bread seems absolutely ridiculously easy. so i'm going to try my hand at baking sandwich bread. the thing is, i barely eat bread. only an occasional piece of toast. i'm a cracker girl. bread will have to be croutons and french toast and for tuna melts. um!

i cannot think of anything else. i mean until the a.e.c. posts upcoming art.a.ma.jig info, i'll wait to add link and image of new work to be donated.

6.16.2009

i just couldn't let this one rest. after looking at it for a while, colors and lines and things begin to nag at me. so i have done some revising and am finished. this is not a true spot on image of the final, but it's close enough. the layer beneath is composed of chess pieces that i cut out of vintage wallpaper. it is difficult to tell, because of the way the image takes; in the bottom right hand area i placed the square, the piece i cut all of the chess pieces out of. in the top left hand is a circle composed of all the pieces, in a target like fashion. if you look closely, and imagine two armies of chess pieces squaring off underneath a bright and geometric landscape. conceptually it's a bit weak but for the most part, i am satisfied now with how this piece worked out. the addition of the horizon line really helped, i think. in addition to the lighter circles and paint/line touch ups. so next up. i begin my next piece (24"x48") for the aec benefit. i've got a plan and drawings and will begin tonight.

6.07.2009

my entire week was full and mostly filled with the new. the thrill of having a couple of new boxes of moo minis arrive, rounded out my week. no matter how many times i have made an order, i always find myself a little nervous. moo has never failed me yet. though i rushed through the process this time and neglected to lighten many of the images in picnic, before filling. it's fine though, no matter. the moo will be gone in a blink of an eye.

toward the middle of the week, i bought a few new pieces of furniture from my mom. these took the place of the raton, which is now in my bedroom, crowding. everything about this plastic wicker furniture says hang art on the wall above me, put flowers on me, change everything, rearrange, sell the raton. on and on. new means, getting rid of the old or repurposing it in some form or fashion. i'm not feeling the repurposing and hope that someday soon, someone comes along who needs these perfect pieces of vintage retro raton.

also this week i attempted and succeeded at baking my first yeast rising cinnamon sticky buns. i prepped the dough and turned off the hvac and sat the dough directly in the sun. i left for a few hours and came back to a mass. so beautiful and surprising.

i could not believe my eyes. it actually has given me confidence to try some more, bread, rolls, you name it. yeast is my friend. i got 15 pieces to framewrights this week for the upcoming chattanooga artists reserve. i'm also working on a large postcard order. we'll see how that turns out. the week just turned out to be madly great. a rush in every way. great times with family and friends. art making and a whole bunch of balcony sitting. it makes my heart feel good enough. i can go back to work tomorrow.

6.01.2009

one of the things that excites me the most about my new, since december, apartment living experience, is the balcony. for the first time in seven years or more, there is space and place enough for a few of my favorite outdoor summer living plants. last year i fell in love with the citronella plant, the shape of the leaves silhouetted, the scent, and the small purplish pink flowers. this year i am trying my hand at lavender, basil, pineapple sage, and peppermint.

i am imagining a long hot summer on the balcony, sweet iced peppermint tea in hand at all times. i have yet to even get the flowers. i am particularly interested in finding the perfect plant stand, one that will hold several plants at once, at different levels, and that has wheels. i like the idea of attaching basket containers to the hand railing but have not, as of yet been impressed with the options. in my mind there is absolutely no rushing this summer thing. everyday i feel like i am waking up on vacation. is that what condo/apartment living is like for everyone? i wonder these things. i imagine catching sea shore scents off the wind. oh the wind can be fierce. it was a wind to be reckoned with this past winter, i am so glad that's over. the wind tears through the streets like you wouldn't believe. and then there is the sunshine. i hesitate to even take pictures, only because i know i couldn't do the sun a bit of justice and plus, i think sunsets are like a dime a dozen. except from my balcony, from my view there has not been one alike, there's not one cloud i've ever seen twice, the blues and whites and pinks and oranges change from day to day. silly, i am almost jealous of myself.

when i was a littler and younger girl i remember my summers revolving around, summer camp, baby-sitting, reading, bed sheet forts, mud ball making, and riding bikes. i remember how as a kid we'd spend every single hour of the day out of doors, mostly. nowadays, the weathermen forecast the air quality code of the day, taking your breath away. i don't care a bit really. after an eight hour day underneath the fluorescent, a nice long sit on the balcony, sweating out the man made light toxins, feels like all the craziness can be reversed. so far, my summer is looking like a vacation on the balcony. i'm wondering, what's yours looking like.